South Africa-based, women-owned chemicals manufacturer and distributor Elegant Line Chemicals received the Frost & Sullivan 2013 South African Entrepreneurial Company of the Year Award in the industrial commodity chemicals space last month.

Elegant Line Chemicals has expanded rapidly within its domestic market in South Africa and to other markets, such as those in other Southern African countries, on the strength of a robust business model that focuses on high product quality with innovative solutions, excellent customer service and imparting training to the chemicals industry, which faces an acute skills shortage, notes global consultancy Frost & Sullivan.

Elegant Line Chemicals has staved off challenges from imports, large multinationals and the scepticism among customers about using commodity chemicals from local small, medium-sized and microenterprises (SMMEs) through its keen understanding of the market in South Africa and Southern Africa.

The company creatively tailored its market entry approach to expand its footprint in Southern Africa and partnered with existing market participants in foreign markets to make the most of the latter’s expertise in market dynamics and customer needs.

“Through the Department of Trade and Industry foreign direct investment initiatives, Elegant Line Chemicals partnered with Illinois Business Consulting University, in Chicago, US, to research and develop, innovative and biodegradable products, such as recycling used oil and organic waste into biodiesel. We are working on establishing a water treatment plant in South Africa, that will use solar energy as a renewable-energy source in partnership with an Italy-based renewable- energy company, says Elegant Line Chemicals MD Nelly Shezi.

The company has also expanded its client pool in the Southern African Development Community region by marketing its chemical products and services directly to end-users and partnering with local suppliers in Angola, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Zambia and Botswana. The company also has export trading partners in India.

“Elegant Line Chemicals is managed by a group of skilled, experienced professionals who are continuously developing innovative products and improving existing products, service offerings and skills to impart to their customers. This not only gives the company a competitive advantage over other SMMEs but also demonstrates its ability to compete with the products of international companies,” says Frost & Sullivan chemicals, materials and food industry analyst Dilshaad Booley.

The company establishes on-the-ground partnerships with distributors and customers, after products have been sold. The sales cycle involves continuous interaction and after-sales service to further improve delivery to customers and educate them on existing and future product offerings.

The company’s ISO 9001 accreditation, awarded in 2009, not only further enhanced its reputation but also enabled it to export its chemicals to other Southern African regions. As the costs of operation in South Africa have increased over the past three years, owing to an increase in electricity and wage costs, chemicals suppliers have considered targeting other regional markets that are not as mature as the South African market.

Elegant Line Chemicals’ well-established partnerships with distributors and agents have enabled it to create successful distribution channels, which, in turn, provide valuable feedback from clients. The company is also moving to an e-commerce platform, which it hopes to launch in August 2015 to coincide with Women’s Month, to lower transactional costs and achieve a faster response time.

“Elegant Line Chemicals can manufacture top-quality commodity chemicals at a cost-competitive rate and customers are therefore showing a preference for its products, as opposed to imports, which have longer lead times,” notes Booley.

The sectors for which the company manufactures and distributes commodity chemicals include water treatment, lubricants, industrial and domestic. The company also provides wastewater management and laboratory testing services.

“Elegant Line Chemicals is also enhancing local competitiveness by upskilling the local labour force through mentorships or in-service training, where the company’s skilled employees transfer valuable knowledge and skills to students,” Booley enthuses.

Shezi explains that the company provides 12-month in-service training, which is accredited by the Chemical Industries Education and Training Authority, for undergraduates in various career paths, and a one-month chemical products training course for its potential skilled and unskilled distributors of domestic and industrial chemicals.

She notes that, in the spirit of ubuntu, Elegant Line Chemicals has also been fully engaged in several socioeconomic projects over the past few years.

“We are proud sponsors of various social initiatives for children and old-age homes, such as the Snenhlanhla Childrens Home and the Umalusi Omuhle old age home, both in KwaZulu-Natal,” highlights Shezi.

Each year, Frost & Sullivan presents the Entrepreneurial Company of the Year Award to the company that has demonstrated excellence in devising a strong growth strategy and robustly implementing it.

The recipient must have shown competence in terms of innovation in products and technologies, leadership in customer value and swiftness in responding to market needs.

Frost & Sullivan also considers the emerging market players in the industry and recognises best practices that position companies for future growth excellence when making the award.

Frost & Sullivan’s Best Practices Award acknowledges companies’ efforts, in a variety of regional and global markets, at demonstrating outstanding achievement and superior performance in areas such as leadership, technological innovation, customer service and strategic product development.

Industry analysts from Frost & Sullivan compare the various market participants and measure their performance through in-depth interviews, analysis and extensive secondary research to identify best practices in the industry.